Unlikely heroes Blanco, Williams lead Phillies past Mariners

Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Jerome Williams throws a pitch in the third inning of an interleague baseball game against the Seattle Mariners on Monday, Aug. 18, 2014, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Michael Perez)

Philadelphia Phillies' Carlos Ruiz (51) scores a run from a Marlon Byrd double while Seattle Mariners catcher Mike Zunino signals to the infield during the third inning of an interleague baseball game on Monday, Aug. 18, 2014, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Michael Perez)

PHILADELPHIA — When your baseball team has lost its way in the opening two-thirds of the season, the following sentence is what occurs: Behind the shutdown pitching of Jerome Williams and the power swing of Andres Blanco, the Phillies beat the Mariners Monday night, 4-1.

That would be the Jerome Williams the Phillies picked off the waiver heap from the Texas Rangers nine days ago who left the game in the eighth inning with no runs on the board for Seattle. And that would be the Andres Blanco, who hadn’t sniffed a big-league roster since 2011 when the Phillies called him up from Triple-A last month.

For Williams, he considers this the third stage in a career that has been an odyssey.

The first stage came with the Giants more than a decade ago when he was a big-time prospect and showed hints of excellence during two solid seasons to open his big-league career.

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The second stage came when that career collapsed and he had to scratch his way back to the majors after a four-year absence that included time with Lancaster in the independent Atlantic League — a time that required immense belief in himself and self-trust in his talents when no one seemed to share the sentiment. Thanks to that attitude, Williams spent 2012 and 2013 as a solid piece on the Angels’ pitching staff.

The third stage came after the Astros released Williams and the Rangers handed him off to the Phillies when they made a waiver claim on him. In two starts with the Phillies he has a 2.19 ERA and allowed eight hits in 12 1/3 innings. Monday night he gave up just three singles and only left when he hit Chris Taylor with a two-strike pitch to lead off the eighth.

Although Ken Giles gave up a pair of hits and allowed Taylor to score, he bounced back to strike out the side and escape without further damage.

“Jerome was solid with his seven innings, a pretty stress-free outing for him,” Ryne Sandberg said of Williams. “He spots his fastball really well, has movement on both sides of the plate.”

For Williams, the success of late is a matter of submission.

“I was hoping I could turn it around earlier,” Williams said of the struggles that led to a 6.71 ERA in 26 ineffective relief appearances for the Astros and two starts with Texas, “but obviously I was hardheaded and didn’t do that. I wanted to do it my way, and my being hardheaded ended up getting me dropped by two teams.

“But with (Carlos Ruiz) behind the plate, I’m not shaking that off. I trust him and he’s been around a lot ... Whatever he puts down, I’m going to be committed to it.”

It isn’t the easiest concession for Williams, a cerebral right-hander who didn’t pitch anywhere in 2010, then revived his career the following year by starting the process in Lancaster.

“Hopefully I can use this opportunity to keep going forward,” Williams said. “I’ve been hardheaded all my life. But you have to learn how to accept change. I accepted change when I was out of baseball and had to work harder to get back. And I’m accepting change now, because I’m having success ... This game is about results, and you need to be the best you can be out there. And the guy I have behind the plate, I trust.”

As for Blanco, his three-run shot off Mariners reliever Dominic Leone was his fourth career homer in the majors in 690 plate appearances and first since July 1, 2011, when he was with the Rangers as well.

Blanco almost hung up his cleats two winters ago when faced with a devastating shoulder injury that required extensive surgery and the loss of the entire 2013 season.

“The doctors told me when I had surgery — that he had to put everything back together and he wasn’t sure if I could get back,” said Blanco, who got the start at shortstop for Jimmy Rollins. “I said, ‘Well, doctor, you just have to do your part and let me do mine.’”

Blanco got back, but was hitting just .241 with a .598 OPS for Lehigh Valley when he was called up mostly out of need of a second reserve infielder. With the Phils, he is 10-for-32 (.313) with four extra-base hits. In Triple-A he had six extra-base hits in 155 plate appearances. Go figure.

“I really want to keep playing,” Blanco said. “That’s why I came back — to keep doing what I’m doing.”